"The so-called "solutions" to the Trump conflict of interest issue are no solutions at all. Looking closely at them reveals they are all simply different levels of trouble."

The size and scope of Donald Trump’s business empire is a serious concern for any and all Americans – whether they voted for or against him.  It’s not just that Mr. Trump is a businessperson, it's the fact that he has so many varied and well-known business interests that the potential for conflict of interest is almost infinite.

• The President-elect owns or leases residential and commercial real estate in the most expensive urban locations in America, hotels and golf clubs all over the world, just to name a few.
• He has varied stock holdings in any number of companies that could easily be positively affected by legislation or Executive Orders.
• He’s also got branding licenses in a myriad of business lines.

Without any violable solutions or legal safeguards in place for this 'COI' issue, the only reality when it comes to Donald Trump's many opportunities to enrich himself while in office is that we're going to have to trust him.

But if that's not at all comforting, perhaps the best thing Congress can do is cobble together a bi-partisan subcommittee to act as a fair but steady watchdog when it comes to Mr. Trump's financial dealings. There have been some instances over the past year where Trump did indeed change his behavior and messaging.

For someone who has repeatedly said he wants to "drain the swamp" in Washington, Mr. Trump should actually welcome that kind of an effort that would literally make his job easier. But unless we see some very clear signs of restraint in this area, the angry and ugly feelings so much of us experienced during the bruising 2016 election will simply continue for the foreseeable future.